1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to the field of cleaning implements, and more particularly to the field of brooms.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventional push broom is a device that is commonly used to clean floors. Such a push broom is shown in FIG. 1. The components of push broom may include a broom handle 1 and a broom head 3 with attached bristles 2. The cleaning action of the broom is provided by the user exerting a downward force on the handle 1 while pushing forward, which causes the bristles 2 attached to the broom head 3 to push loose debris on a surface, such as a floor, to another location. The user then lifts the broom head 3 slightly and pulls backward, such that the broom head 3 is repositioned to repeat the cleaning action.
One disadvantage, of the conventional push broom is that it usually takes several passes of the broom head to completely clean an area. For example, when attempting to sweep grass clippings off a concrete or asphalt surface, often the clippings partially adhere to the surface, which causes a rolling effect under the bristles as the bristles attempt to push the clippings away. The result is many of the clippings remain in the area just swept, which in turn requires the user to repeat the sweeping action in the same area several times in order to remove all of the debris. The need for such repetition can also be observed when sweeping sand, dirt or small rocks on a similar surface. Even with these flaws the conventional push broom is the device that is most commonly used to clean floors or other similar surfaces.
Debris can be removed from a floor surface by water pressure exerted by a hose nozzle attached to a common garden hose. An example of such a hose nozzle is illustrated in FIG. 11. The hose nozzle is a hand held device and, when activated while pointed at the floor, requires several horizontal and vertical motions in order to remove debris. The disadvantage of this method is the significant amount of time and effort required to clean a large area. This method of cleaning can be ineffective if the debris content is high, partially stuck to the floor, relatively large or relatively heavy. In addition, the remaining water on the floor surface may cause puddling and require excessively long drying times.
Wheel-mounted spray systems are also known. These devices are generally called water brooms. An example of such a broom is shown in FIG. 12. This type of device uses the force of water to lift and push debris. Given the spray jets"" close proximity to the floor, these devices can be effective when attempting to remove loose and relatively small debris from a floor. However, if the debris is larger or heavier, several cleaning passes may be required. Its effectiveness can be greatly enhanced when using water pressure above 75 PSI. The advantage of this art is that it can sweep an area faster than the hose nozzle method mentioned above. The disadvantages of this art are many: 1) with normal household water pressures of 40 to 75 PSI these devices are marginally effective in removing larger stones, gravel and other similar debris, 2) with normal water pressure, these devices have limited abrasive cleaning characteristics, and mechanical pushing ability, 3) a pressure boosting device may be required in order to achieve the desired cleaning effectiveness, 4) with higher water pressures, the high misting effect can damage surfaces such as drywall in garages, 5) the cleaning action is provided only by the force of water which may be inappropriate in certain areas of a floor, 6) the water and debris on the floor can only be moved and directed with the spray of additional water, 7) as water pools in front of the device the pushing effectiveness of the water spray diminishes, thus allowing water and debris to flow around and behind the device, 8) higher amounts of water are required in order to clean a given surface, 9) the floor surface can remain very wet after use, 10) significant puddling can occur after use, 11) the floor drying time may be excessive due to the high amount of water remaining on the floor, 12) the remaining water on the floor may need to be removed by a push broom or squeegee, and 13) the corrosive effects of water, salt and grime, will cause the wheels or castors to deteriorate and become inoperable over time. These reasons, collectively or in various combinations, may explain why this type of device has had limited commercial success.
The water broom art and similar art are documented in several United States patents, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein, including: U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,931,931, 4,022,382, 4,083,495, 4,095,746, 4,930,706, Des. 243,610, Des. 244,532, Des. 250,826, and Des. 277,499.
Brush and water technology have been combined. FIG. 13 shows an example of such a device. Pictured is a model 8540 cleaning device manufactured by Mr. LongArm, Inc. This device features a water cut-off turn valve 100, with an exploded view 101, and a brush head 104, with an exploded view of the bottom 105. This device also features an extendable broom handle 102 which is adjusted at 103.
FIG. 15 shows a flow chart that lists the procedures for the brush device""s use. Referring to FIGS. 13 and 15, and starting at step 130, the user connects a garden hose to the water service and the brush device at 100. The user checks that the water cut-off valve 101 is turned off, at step 131. The user turns on the water service, at step 132. While holding the broom handle 102, the user positions the brush head 104 near the surface to be cleaned, at step 133. At step 134, the user turns the valve control 101 such that water passes through the valve 101, the broom handle 102 and emerges from a hole 107 at the bottom of the brush head 105. The user pushes the brush head 104 onto the surface to be cleaned, at step 135. At step 136, the user induces a back and forth action on the broom handle 102 such that the brush head 104 scrubs the desired surface. At step 137, if additional cleaning is required, step 136 is repeated. If not, at step 138, the user removes the brush head 104 from the surface, turns off the water cut-off valve 101 and stops. This device is very useful when cleaning surfaces such as walls, vinyl siding, cars, tires and other sloping or substantially vertical surfaces. The general release of water near the brush bristles and the scrubbing action is very effective for these surfaces. The issue of where the water goes is generally not a problem because the water falls and drips off the item being cleaned. However, this type of device is not appropriate for cleaning floors or other similar horizontal surfaces. When used on a floor, the water emerges on the floor in an arbitrary manner. There is no directional control of the water from the brush head, which makes this device difficult to use in floor sweeping applications. In addition, the lack of easy control of the water flow at the cut-off valve adds another layer of difficulty and complexity to the operation on such surfaces. This device is simply not practical for cleaning floors. It should be noted that the five uses cited by the manufacturer""s accompanying brochure picture sloping or substantially vertical surface applications. The applications cited are: a user cleaning a house window, the back window of a car minivan, a house awning, the front of a boat, and the vinyl siding of a house. There are no horizontal floor applications cited.
Accordingly, a need exists for a device that overcomes the drawbacks of the devices described above and that is practical for cleaning floors and other horizontal surfaces.
The invention merges the push broom technology together with the water broom technology. The result is a highly effective and unique floor cleaning tool.
Provided herein is a device for sweeping a substantially horizontal surface, which includes a broom having a handle and a head, a valve disposed on the device, and a spray bar disposed on the head for directionally spraying a liquid that is supplied to the valve, wherein the valve regulates the pressure of liquid sprayed by the spray bar. The liquid may be water from a common garden hose. In embodiments, the spray bar is movably positioned on the head. In embodiments, the device may further include a reservoir for holding an agent for treating the horizontal surface. The treating agent may be a soap, a solvent, a stain, a cleaning liquid, a paint, a wax, or any other known treating agent. The device may include a filter for filtering particles from the treating agent. In embodiments, the valve is spring-loaded and/or hand-controlled. The device may include tubing between the valve and the spray bar. The tubing may be positioned internal to the handle or external to the handle. The handle may be used to convey liquid from the valve to the spray bar. In an embodiment, the head may include water channels. The spray bar may be made integral to the head. The spray bar may take a variety of shapes, including elliptical, u-shaped and straight shapes.
Provided herein is also a method of using a device for cleaning a substantially horizontal surface, including providing a broom having a handle and a head, positioning a valve on the handle, positioning a spray bar on the head for spraying a liquid that is supplied to the valve, providing a supply of cleaning liquid to the valve, opening the valve and sweeping the surface with the broom while spraying the surface with the spray bar. The methods may include adjusting the position of the spray bar according to the nature of the cleaning task.
Provided herein is further a device for sweeping a substantially horizontal surface, which may include a broom having a handle and a head, a spring-loaded, hand-controlled valve disposed on the handle, a spray bar disposed on the head for directionally spraying a liquid that is supplied to the valve, wherein the valve regulates the pressure of liquid sprayed by the spray bar and wherein the spray bar is movably positioned on the head, and a tube, having a lumen, for delivering the liquid from the valve to the spray bar. The device may further include a reservoir for holding an agent for treating the horizontal surface. The tube may be positioned internal to the handle. The head may include water channels. The spray bar may be made integral to the head.